At Agbiz’s Grain Logistics Workshop, which took place outside Johannesburg on 11 February 2015, participants discussed solutions for complying with the amendments to the National Road Traffic Regulations.

The term ‘Food Security’ is often bandied about loosely by politicians, bureaucrats, farmers, businessmen, consumers, and even scientists, without many having a proper understanding of the underlying meaning thereof and the contributing factors thereto.

In his address President Zuma made considerable reference to Land Reform issues, including the introduction of a 12 000 hectares land ceiling, foreigners to be deprived of owning land in South Africa, the introduction of the Office of the Valuer General to signal the end of the so-called "Willing buyer, willing seller" principle, and the introduction of the 50/50 farmworker equity and co-management scheme on a pilot basis.

"For some time now it has become clear that 2015 will be absolutely critical in finalizing and implementing a detailed land reform framework, agreed to by all key role players, that is economically viable and effects sustainable and significant land reform, without compromising food security," says Dr John Purchase, Agbiz CEO.

President Jacob Zuma signed the Broad-Based Black Economic Empowerment (B-BBEE) Amendment Act 46 of 2013 into law in January 2014, while the new Phase 1 and Phase 2 B-BBEE Codes of Good Practice were gazetted in respectively October 2013 and October 2014.

"This week ESKOM again warned that the country’s electricity supply system was close to the point where load-shedding would be necessary. In a December 2014 NEDLAC meeting with the Minister of Energy, Minister Tina Joemat-Pettersson, it became clear that the situation of on-off load-shedding will manifest itself over at least the next three to four years," says Dr John Purchas, Agbiz CEO.